It was late on an April evening inside Kansas City's old Kemper Arena nearly a quarter-century ago. The great Danny Manning grabbed hold of the basketball he and his Kansas teammates — but mostly Manning — had used to claim the 1988 NCAA championship. As he cradled it in his arm, Larry Brown, the team's coach, took a hard look at that picture, freezing it forever in his memory. He then began searching through the commotion for his friend, Ed Manning.

"I thought, 'Wow, how proud Ed must be,' " Brown said Friday.

Brown wasn't just thinking this on account of the 40 minutes of transcendent brilliance Manning had achieved on the court that night, but also the manner in which he had comported himself through four college seasons on the way to his moment.

"It was maybe one of the greatest feelings I've had in my life," Brown said. "Winning a national championship is something truly remarkable, but we had the best player, and maybe the best example for how our game should be played. That was an amazing emotion."

Danny Manning and Larry Brown were together through 147 games at Kansas, and then another 171 or so with the Los Angeles Clippers in the NBA. So their confrontation in Dallas on Sunday at 8 p.m. ET (Fox Sports Net) is not your ordinary Conference USA opener.

Manning, 46, is in his first season as a college coach, in charge of the Tulsa Golden Hurricane. Brown, 72, is in his first season at SMU, his latest and possibly last stop in the most itinerant of all head coaching careers.

"I dread this game," Brown said Friday on a teleconference. "Danny's been such a big part of my life. It's going to be a special moment for me seeing him on the other bench coaching, but I don't enjoy that opportunity. If we lose, I don't take losses very well. If we win, I'm not going to be happy about him being on the losing side.

"I admire the heck out of him. I think he brings credit to our game.

"Every time I'm on the court, I'm reminded of how he played and I kind of hope one day I'll have a kid just like him."

Manning was the son of a coach. His father, Ed, was an assistant for the Kansas teams when Danny played and later was with Brown on the San Antonio Spurs' bench. Brown said he saw the potential for a coaching future for Danny when he was a child showing up practices for the Carolina Cougars, an ABA team for which Ed played and Brown coached.

When Danny's career was winding down as an NBA player in the early 2000s, whoever was coaching him at the time would tell Brown what a mentor he was to the younger players, how much he helped guide them. Brown thought Manning would take a job in the NBA but instead he chose to return to KU and join Bill Self's staff.

Manning credited Brown for teaching him how to approach the game and play the game well enough to last 15 seasons in the NBA.

"I reflect back on my college time and my professional time with Coach; he made me a better person, and he made me a better basketball player," Manning said. "He's had a huge impact on my life.

"Play hard, play together, be unselfish — these are all things we try to share with our team here at Tulsa. A lot of the things are a direct reflection of what I learned from Coach Brown."

Manning spent nine seasons on Self's KU staff, becoming an assistant coach in 2006 and working particularly with the frontcourt players. The vast majority of those he tutored — the Morris twins, Darrell Arthur, Cole Aldrich — eventually played in the NBA. Last season, with Thomas Robinson blossoming into an All-American and KU on its way to the Final Four, Brown spent a good bit of time in Lawrence observing practices and attending games.

One day in February, Manning called Brown into his office and said he thought it was time for him to become a head coach, and what did Brown think?

"I think the way he respected and played the game, he was always meant to be a coach," Brown said. "I don't know if anybody has a better background than him."

Manning's Tulsa team struggled early this season, standing 8-6 with an offense that does not score points easily. Brown has had a revolutionary effect on SMU to this point. The Mustangs are 10-5, with wins over TCU and Utah, after winning only 13 games all last season.

"Coach Brown is a very challenging coach," Manning said. "He is always pushing you to reach your limits, to max out your potential. Being around someone like that also helps make you mentally and physically tough in terms of being able to grind through tough situations. Regardless of whether Coach is in NBA or college, that's part of his DNA: His relentless pursuit of excellence.

"There'll be a lot of hugs and love before the game. Once the game starts, the competitor in all of us will come out. And once that game is over, we'll go back to the hugs and love."